Interactive lesson

Homestead safety, step by step

Interactive lesson: five questions before the job, protective kit, strimmer and mower, machines, ladders and loads, children on the homestead and first aid.

Free sample Chapters 1 and 2 (8 steps) are free. The full lesson comes with the Safe working with tools and machinery module. Already bought? Unlock

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The whole lesson as text

1. Five questions before the job

Most accidents on a homestead are not accidents, but a job started without five seconds' thought.

Do I know this job? — A job you are doing for the first time is done alongside someone who knows it, and slowly.
Kit and a sound tool — No glasses, no grinder. Check the tool: a loose axe head, a cracked guard, a brake that doesn't hold.
Does anyone know where I am? — Tell someone at home where you're going and when you'll be back. Keep your phone on your body.
What if it goes wrong? — Know where you escape to and where the first aid kit is. A first aid kit, a phone and an emergency plan go to every place of work.

Why: On a homestead there is no boss to check your kit and send you home when you are exhausted. You are both the worker and the boss, and the work is often done alone and in a hurry, before the rain or the dark.

For jobs you do regularly, do the risk assessment once, in writing. That way it becomes a habit.
Before digging trenches, driving fence posts or ploughing old ground, find out where buried cables and pipes run: in the US call 811, in the UK and Ireland ask the utilities for their plans. If a plough or spade strikes a metal object of unknown shape (wartime ordnance still turns up in parts of the UK), don't touch it, step back the way you came and call the police.

2. Protective kit

Protective equipment is not a substitute for a safe method; it is the last line of defence.

Eyes and ears first — Glasses or a visor (EN 166, ANSI Z87.1 in the US) for the strimmer, grinder and splitting. Ear defenders or earplugs (EN 352) for the chainsaw, strimmer, grinder and two-wheel tractor.
Boots and gloves — Toe-cap boots for machinery, firewood, stone and cattle. Gloves (EN 388) for tools, wire and wood, but not near rotating parts.
Helmet and mask — A helmet (EN 397) for felling and working under loads. An FFP2 or FFP3 mask (N95 or P100 in the US) for hay dust, sawdust and mouldy hay.
Noise above 85 dB — If you have to shout to be heard by someone a metre (3 ft) away, you need protection. Every 3 dB more halves the safe time without it.

Why: When something goes wrong, your kit decides between a bruise and a permanent injury. Safety glasses and ear defenders are the cheapest kit, and they protect what never comes back: your eyes and your hearing.

A glove, loose sleeve, scarf, lace or long hair near a drill, grinder, PTO shaft or rotary tiller winds in within a fraction of a second. Near machines that turn: close-fitting clothes, hair tied back, no jewellery.
Vibration from chainsaws and strimmers damages the fingers over the years. Take breaks every 30–60 minutes and keep your hands warm and dry.